


The Black Spire Premium

by saltylikecrait



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Gift Giving, Post-Canon, Racing, Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge, original droid character - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-11
Updated: 2020-08-11
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:08:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25835530
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saltylikecrait/pseuds/saltylikecrait
Summary: After Exegol, Finn and Rey return to Batuu, only to be caught up in more hijinx.
Relationships: Finn/Rey (Star Wars)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 14
Collections: Finnrey Fanfic Connection





	The Black Spire Premium

**Author's Note:**

> Look who's back with more finnrey! This is a sequel of sorts to one of my favorite fics, [Adventures in Black Spire Outpost,](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20049772) but it can be its own standalone story as well.

As the _Millennium Falcon_ touched down, Finn felt a wave of excitement crash over him. This part of Batuu was unfamiliar to him, but it had been a while since the last time he’d been here and there was still so much he wanted to explore. 

He thought he heard Rey whoop with delight from the cockpit. She had been ecstatic to make a return to Black Spire too, though this wasn’t her first time coming here since their first adventure together. Last time they were here had been adventurous in the bad kind of way. They hoped this time, they would get to enjoy what the outpost had to offer without the worry of stormtroopers chasing them.

The moment he touched down on the surface of the ramp, he felt the warm air hit him. It wasn’t humid like Ajan Kloss, which was welcoming. As he looked around, he realized this part of the outpost was quiet and scenic. There were tall, thick trees with reddish bark, ferns that dotted the dusty dirt road, and a strange chirping coming from them. 

“Where’s this?” he asked Rey when she approached behind him.

“About a quarter mile from the outpost,” she explained. “This is where the Resistance was set up before we recalled most of our troops.”

He wondered how bustling this area became when there were troops stationed here. There couldn’t have been that many, unless they wanted to attract First Order attention. Finn didn’t know much about the Batuuan base. Vi Moradi had founded it before his first visit, but they didn’t have many troops here at the time. The closest he had gotten to Batuu since then was when he was undercover on a First Order Star Destroyer for a few weeks. Once his cover was blown, he fled back to Ajan Kloss to rejoin Rey and Poe.

“Where to first?” he asked. 

Rey’s stomach growled, almost as if on cue. She flushed pink, embarrassed.

“Well…” She laced her fingers together. “I’ve been craving that colorful bang-corn you can get here…”

“Lead the way.” Finn winked at her. “You actually know where to go.”

It turned out to be a short walk and before they knew it, they were in the outpost proper. The faded brown structure of the marketplace was just in view, decorated with bright flags of different tribes and species that visited. It was nice to be back.

They found the bang-corn stand tucked away into a corner of the market, a line queued for a good few feet away from the front counter. The oil and sugar scent of the kettle wafted through the air, making Finn’s stomach rumble too.

Rey laughed, “Looks like I’m not the only one who wants some.”

As they stood back in the line, they waited quietly for their turn, sometimes hearing snippets of conversations and pointing to each other things they might want to check out later. 

Finn’s ears caught two voices in a heated argument.

“Tinis Delste is going to win this year,” a bright blue Ortolan insisted. “Look at the odds he was given!”

His human companion rolled his eyes. “Have you seen his pod racer? It looks like he cobbled together a bunch of space junk! There’s no way it can steer that well. He’ll run straight into one of the walls on the turns.”

Beside Finn, Rey practically buzzed with excitement. “Podracing?” she spoke up, grabbing the attention of the two in line. “Those are still around? I thought the New Republic banned them?”

“Only on a _legal_ basis,” the Ortolan snarked. “And when has that ever stopped anyone?”

She turned to Finn, her eyes wide and full of ideas. “We should go!”

“But those are _banned,_ Rey,” he reminded her. “They might be dangerous.”

If she thought anything of it, she made no expression to say so. He should have known a former scavenger from Jakku wouldn’t care much about legality or safety. Her entire life had revolved around danger.

Knowing a lost battle when he saw one, Finn sighed and hoped Rey would just get distracted by something else at the outpost and forget all about the podracing.

The line moved quickly, but it was still long. He tried not to watch the time when it came to things like this. Instead, he and Rey gazed around the marketplace and pointed out any details they thought was interesting to them.

They then spotted a familiar face as she turned around a corner. Streaks of blue hair stood out against a bright red jacket. Even at a distance, there was no mistaking her. Vi Moradi was hard to forget.

When she spotted them, she smiled widely and waved before approaching them.

“A little bird told me you were heading here,” she greeted. “Glad I caught up to you!”

“We didn’t know you were still on Batuu!” Rey exclaimed.

She stood next to them in line. “I decided to stay put for now. Black Spire is a great place to keep up on the First Order gossip. Savi’s keeping me busy working too. And well…” she looked a little embarrassed. “For all it’s faults, I like living here.”

Finn wondered why that flustered her. He thought it was nice to hear. Everyone should have a place they like, especially one where they could live on a long-term basis. If Vi choose Batuu, that was her own preference.

“What is this podracing track we’re hearing about?” Rey asked her.

Vi waved her hand in dismissal. “Oh, that’s, you know, where everyone gets their gambling fix. It’s a pretty seedy track. The people there are sketchy at best.”

Finn wanted to thank her for trying to dissuade Rey’s curiosity, but he could tell by his friend’s face that she was not going to let it go. Maybe one race wouldn’t hurt. Then she would get a taste of them as a spectator and they could move on.

They ordered their bang-corn and got a bag for Vi as well. The snack was a pleasant mix of salty and sweet, and just the right thing to take the edge off Rey’s hunger. 

“Do you have any places you need to go to?” Vi asked. “Or is this just a leisure trip?”

“Well,” Finn answered, “we were going to check out the droid depot to see if we can find any spare parts for R2. Thought it wouldn’t hurt to keep some on hand, since his model isn’t manufactured anymore.” As attached as they became to the old droid, both Finn and Rey were paranoid that one day, they wouldn’t have the parts to keep him running. He had been around for so long, and it was hard to imagine the galaxy without him.

As it happened, the kettle stall was about halfway through the marketplace. To get to the droid depot, they had to cut through the area that used to be under First Order occupation. This time, they wouldn’t have to constantly check over their shoulders for stormtrooper patrols, but old habits might die hard.

The shop owner, a blue amphibious Utai named Mubo waved them down as they entered the building! 

“Vi! It’s been months! How can I help you?”

“Not me today, Mubo.” She pointed at her friends. “These two are looking for some parts.”

The Utai scanned the newcomers with curiosity and then smiled. “What kind of parts we talking about?”

“We’ve got an old R2 unit we want to have spare parts on hand for,” Rey explained. “And I mean _old._ Like, pre-Clone Wars old.”

Finn drifted away from them, his eyes wandering around the shop. Rey had this handled. The last time they were here, the droids helped them escape from stormtroopers. Finn would never forget that.

There were unique parts hung on the shop’s walls. Colors he’d never seen on a droid before. Droids in working order stayed behind a rail, waiting for a potential new home to show interest in them.

One such droid caught his eye. A bright blue base with orange accents, it was an R3-unit based on the clear dome of its head. If he looked inside, Finn could see the parts and wires that made up the droid’s head engineering.

“Hello there,” Finn greeted. “What’s your story?”

The droid chirped a slow string of noises. It was an older version of binary than what BB-8 used, but it was far more simplified and easier to follow.

This droid knew its limitations, being only able to hold a few hyperspace jump coordinates at one time as it was. It had fewer components than some other R3 models, hence it was more agile than most, and it really wanted Finn to know it was competent and reliable at its job despite less technical capabilities.

What it had in terms of recent upgrades was a new personality chip installed by Mubo to help it sell. Finn was a little taken aback by the idea of reprogramming a personality, but the droid behaved like this was standard, and well, there were at least good intentions behind this. 

He felt for the droid and understood its fears. Buyers often sought newer droids, not droids that ran sluggishly at times. Finn knew nothing about collecting droids, but he wasn’t sure if this particular R3-unit had any worth. 

Then, he thought of R2, a droid at least fifty years old, who also had seen better days. Still, the Resistance wouldn’t give up on him. Every droid had its worth. Perhaps this droid just needed to find someone who understood that.

Gazing at the price tag for the blue and orange droid, Finn grimaced at the cost. He couldn’t afford that and the Resistance didn’t have much spare credits on them. 

“Don’t give up hope,” he told the droid. “I’ll keep my ear out for a buyer.”

The droid beeped its thanks, though Finn thought he heard a note of wistfulness in its vocals. It made his human heart sink.

Looking for where Rey went off to, he found her standing at a conveyor belt on the other side of the store as she looked for parts. She tore her gaze away when he approached. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing—“ he tried, only to decide not to hide what was bothering him. He took a heaving breath. “That droid over there, the blue and orange one, I wish I could give him a home. A job.” 

“Too expensive?” Rey glanced at the droid. “He looks pretty old.”

“Younger than R2,” Finn replied. “Sounds like he’s been here for a while.”

Her eyes softened. She reached out and stroked the skin of his arm underneath his sleeve, like she was trying to comfort him. “I wish we could take him, Finn, but we can’t afford a droid right now. I wish—“ She didn’t finish her sentence, but he understood what she meant without her saying anything.

They bought the parts they could get and left the shop with mixed feelings. Finally, they had a bit more to keep R2 working for a while longer, but R2 had a home when many older droids did not.

“I was going to see how Hondo’s holding up,” Vi added as they stepped out. “He’s been on pretty good behavior since you were last here, but you know Hondo… Can’t trust he always will.”

Rey chuckled. “How could we forget? We still haven’t repaid him for all the damage he caused the _Falcon.”_

Vi looked a little nervous, like she wasn’t sure if Rey was being serious or not. Sometimes, Finn had trouble figuring it out too. She could hold a grudge when she wanted to, especially when it came to things she considered hers.

It was a short walk to the hangar. It seemed to be tourist off-season too, meaning not as many people were around. It was a delightful change of pace and their walk took no time at all.

There was a commotion inside when they got there, however. Hondo was shouting at his crew, visibly upset when they got a glimpse of him.

“Why are you all standing around! This isn’t a time for a break! Either find him or find a replacement!”

Vi stepped in. “What’s up, Hondo?” 

He whirled around, only to look disappointed when he saw who had arrived. Then, he waved his hand dismissively. “Oh, it’s just you, Miss Moradi,” he said. “My racer has gone missing. Figures.”

“Racer?” Rey inquired. She arched an eyebrow, like she knew what the answer would be.

“For the Black Spire Premium,” said Hondo. He clarified, “Podracing.”

Her excitement increased. “You’re entering the race! Where’s the racer?”

He pointed towards the back of the hangar. _“Were_ going to race,” he corrected. “Our racer’s a no-show.”

Walking back to where he pointed, Rey, followed by Finn, eyed the podracer. With a base color of green with orange accents, Finn thought the overall design looked nice, if a bit bulky. To be honest, he knew next to nothing about podracers except that they were incredibly fast and incredibly dangerous.

“There’s a camera on the back of the cockpit,” Hondo explained, “to keep an eye on the competition.”

“You need a pilot, right?” Rey grinned. “If he doesn’t show up, could I give it a shot?”

“Rey, no,” Finn hissed. Vi looked just as concerned.

Scratching his chin, Hondo considered the offer. “You’ve never flown one though?”

“I’m a quick learner,” Rey insisted. “Fast reflexes too.” She was obviously referring to the Force. Finn wondered if that would be cheating.

“What pay cut would you expect?” he asked, looking to make a deal.

“What’s the pot?”

“One-hundred-fifty-thousand, with two tiers of runner-ups.”

“Fifteen percent, then,” she demanded. “And I assume I’ll be paid regardless if I win or not.”

“Twelve, and you get 5,000 for racing.”

“Deal.”

“Rey, no!”

She turned to Finn with a grin. “Relax,” she told him. “I’m just getting us and the Resistance some pocket change. Nothing reckless, I promise.”

Finn was skeptical, but he knew Rey well enough to know that once she had her heart set on something, nothing was going to stop her.

* * *

They spent that whole evening outside Savi’s, a makeshift map of the course drawn up by one of Vi’s more knowledgeable coworkers sitting in front of them on a table. 

“I don’t think there are too many sharp turns to worry about,” Rey observed. “I just have to make sure I’m looking straight ahead to plan out my movements.” Hondo told her she could test run the racer later, she was just waiting for them to move it to a place where she could practice discreetly. 

Finn honestly could say that he couldn’t wait for the race to be done with. He was a nervous wreck with Rey being as reckless as she was. Try as he did, he couldn’t convince her to give up her asinine plan to race in something she had no experience in. 

But his attitude adjusted when he saw her get the hang of piloting the racer, and she beamed with joy as she zoomed across the clearing in the forest. Even if he didn’t think she could win, maybe she could at least finish the race without getting hurt. They would make some credits, anyway.

Then the morning came and the reality of the situation set in again. Rey was entering a race when she had no experience. This was going to be a disaster, he could feel it.

He was grateful for Vi, who tried to remain the voice of reason until Rey was seated in the cockpit again. 

“Are you sure you want to go through with this?” she asked. “No one will blame you if you back out. Hondo should have had a backup plan.”

But Rey only smiled, unable to contain her excitement. “I’ll be fine. I’ve been dreaming of entering a race since I was a kid.”

“Just come back in one piece,” Finn begged. “Please.”

“I’m not going to hurdle into a wall,” she promised. “Even if I’m last, I’ll cross the finish line.” There was that familiar softness in her eyes again. He believed her.

She embraced him tightly, lingering for a moment before she hopped into the cockpit. Knowing that soon he would be asked to leave the area, Finn walked away, finding Vi waiting for him outside the track.

“Well, the track itself isn’t very long,” she tried to assure him. “I heard a race only lasts about seven minutes.”

They found a pair of seats as close to the finish line as they could get. It didn’t cost much to attend the race as a spectator, but the better seats had a bigger price. Vi nodded at a Blutopian sitting nearest to the starting line. 

“That’s Oga Garra, she owns the cantina… and keeps the prices inflated here.”

“And people just let her get away with that?” Finn frowned. He would think the civilians who lived here would fight that. 

Vi smirked. “You would think, huh? Well, she’s the big crime boss on Batuu. Pay her fees, and she won’t send her goons to ruin you.”

Finn felt himself wince. Maybe one day, when the New Republic was intact again, he could direct their attention to this. 

The racers were towed in and placed into a line, Rey was set towards the outer wall, assigned number seven. She would have to maneuver herself closer to the inner boundary of the track to shorten the length of it. That was often a good strategy, but getting there might prove to be difficult if everyone was jockeying for it.

The countdown started; the crowd grew louder in their excitement. Finn tried to hear the announcer over the intercom, but it was too loud to make sense of the string of words he was uttering.

From where he could see, Rey looked focused and determined. Nerves set his stomach aflame again. He kept telling himself she only needed to be careful for seven minutes. Surely, even Rey could manage that.

After what seemed like an eternity, the countdown finally hit zero. The racers zoomed off, a trail of dust left in their wake. Finn kept his eye on the green racer.

The first obstacle in her path was a tall divider centered in the track. Logically, the thing to do here would be to avoid it, allowing the racers to split into two sections to avoid running into a wall.

Instead of the logical, Rey steered herself sharply to the left, barely missing the divider but bringing herself to the other side of the track. To avoid her, however, the racer in orange behind her had to swerve, causing him to spin out of control. He hit the divider, his racer erupting into a fireball upon impact.

The crowd gasped and Finn felt the blood drain from his face. Just seconds into the race and Rey was already being reckless.

“No offense,” Vi commented, “but your girlfriend is crazy.”

He shook his head. “She’s not my girlfriend, but yeah, not arguing with you there.”

“Oh,” Vi backtracked. “I thought—there was a rumor…”

It wasn’t like he hadn’t thought of the prospect before, but each time Finn thought there was a chance, something happened: a temporary separation, stress, a new mission. Then, the fall of the First Order came and with it, a new wall between them. Rey hadn’t been herself since Exegol and trusted into a new role as a general, Finn had little time to speak with her. All he knew was he felt her suddenly vanish from the galaxy and then she miraculously reappeared, assuring everyone that Palpatine was truly dead and gone this time. Suddenly, she was adding to her records a last name: Skywalker, but whenever he brought it up, Rey told him that Luke gave her his blessing to take it and left it at that. She wasn’t avoiding him or anything, but she always seemed to be lost in thought and restless, like she wasn’t sure where she was supposed to be. He wanted to reach out to her, but he thought maybe for now, he should just leave it alone. The war had left its mark on everyone. If she wanted to talk about it, she would.

One day, Finn wanted to tell her. He just wasn’t sure when the right time would be.

Rey handled the following turns smoothly, though perhaps not as gracefully as the other racers. The path took them to the forest, in a marked area for the makeshift (and illegal) track. The famous spires that gave Black Spire Outpost its namesake could be seen in the distance. 

The hardest part was to avoid hitting the pine trees which densely collected in the area. Weaving in and out of the obstacles was the trick, but timing wrong or miscalculating spacing would end in chaos.

Almost immediately, the third placeholder avoided a thick tree trunk, only to run into another. Taking her chance, Rey zipped in and took the spot. 

Vi jumped up and cheered her on, then startled by her own outburst and looked around, like she was hoping no one saw her. Embarrassed, she sat back down.

Finn couldn’t blame her. Part of him wanted to do the same, but his nerves kept him stationary. 

When Rey zoomed across the finish line, he felt some relief, but then remembered she still had two more laps around the track. Tailed by two far more experienced racers, she dropped back to fifth place.

The second lap passed without incident, though Rey managed to pull ahead into fourth. Once she zoomed passed the finish line and entered the third and final lap, the emotion in the air around the race seemed to prickle with static. Though he doubted anyone hadn’t _not_ taken the race seriously until now, the remaining nine racers knew this was their last chance to find an opening to take first.

A gap appeared between the divider and the person in third. Seeing it as her opportunity, Rey took it, pulling ahead of the other racer. 

But the other competitor wasn’t having it. Glaring at Rey, she drifted her racer to the left, trying to push Rey into the divider. 

Finn felt his heart stop. He held his breath.

Somehow, Rey either anticipated this or her instincts were guiding her, which, if Finn were to be honest, was very possible. The Force gave her physical abilities an extra boost, why not her sense of foresight? She throttled the engine to give it a quick burst of speed, barely evading the other racer and taking her spot in the rankings as the opposing red podracer skimmed against the wall and caught fire.

Eight racers left.

The Gungan in first was very far ahead and it would take a lot of effort for Rey to catch up, or just pure luck. The best she could do was try to keep a hold on her rank and maybe overtake the competitor in second. Finn really hoped Rey knew her limitations and saw the likely outcomes of the race, depending on what actions she choose. It would be an impressive feat for a total newbie to finish in third. 

The forest came into view again, but it seemed the racer in second was having a bit more problems weaving through the trees this time. With how fast the podracers went, it was almost impossible to take the same route twice.

To avoid a tree, the Blutopian made a sharp turn which took him way off course. This was Rey’s chance. There was no way she could take first now, with the leading competitor already past the forest, but as long as she could keep her distance from the other racers and evade the trees, she could cross the finish line second.

The camera zoomed in on her face. Even under the goggles, Finn could see determination in her eyes. 

“She’s going to do it,” Vi breathed.

He said nothing, fearing his voice would doom her if he was too confident.

The crowd cheered as the Gungan in the blue racer took first place. Most people were already standing up, making their way down to the champion’s circle or to the betting counters to claim their credits. Finn and Vi stayed where they were, waiting for their racer. Hondo, no doubt, was already in the champion’s circle, expecting his racer's return with a wide and surprised smile.

With no other racers in sight, Rey zoomed across the line with ease. Finn and Vi applauded her, screaming her name, though they were the only ones in the spectators to do so.

They wandered down to the ground level of the stands, where each podracer slowed to a halt before being hauled again to the champion’s circle. Rey was beaming while Hondo ran beside her, exclaiming something that Finn was too far to hear.

He did a quick mental calculation in his head. If the second place winner received 75,000 credits and Rey took a cut of twelve percent plus the 5,000 she received just for racing…

She just earned herself 14,000 credits. That was a lot of bang-corn she could buy with that amount, though he doubted Rey would spend it all on something so inane—

No, wait, Rey might really spend it all on snacks if they let her. 

When she found him in the incoming crowd, she beamed at him and waved. He approached her, leaning in to hug her tightly.

“Congratulations,” he whispered. “Please don’t do that ever again.”

She grinned at him. “Hondo thinks he can make a winner out of me.”

Finn felt his stomach flip. He stuttered.

“—Finn, relax. I’m just joking. It was fun, but I’m not leaving the Resistance yet.” Rey scrunched up her face, attempting to wink. Try as she might, she hadn’t figured out how to without her other eye closing too.

* * *

That night, they celebrated with Hondo’s crew at Oga’s though Rey snuck away for a while with Vi in tow, telling Finn to get them drinks. They wouldn’t be gone long, she insisted. She was just running out to one of the shops to buy something before it closed.

Hondo paid for the first round of drinks, setting them down on tables outside. It was cool, but still proving to be a nice evening.

The shadowy outlines of Rey and Vi returning were unmistakably them, but they were not alone. Behind them, a droid trailed leisurely, its head rotating as it took in its surroundings. When they were finally illuminated by the streetlamps, Finn realized it was the blue and orange droid he met in the depot earlier.

“Hey,” he greeted. “What’s up?”

Rey beamed. “Finn, meet R3-SPK. Your new astromech.”

He felt himself blink. “Oh, Rey, you know I can’t afford him.”

“That’s why I got him for you. Think of him as a late gift for all the birthdays we missed.”

The droid droned excitedly. He looked to Finn for instruction, rolling closer. A spark illuminated his dome for a second.

This was quite a gift, and very few people had ever given him one before. He looked at Rey, lost for words. Instead of trying to convey an emotion that he barely understood, he embraced her instead.

“Thank you.”

“The co-general of the Resistance should have a droid helper of his own,” she replied.

Finn couldn’t help the smile that slowly spread on his face as he pulled away from her and looked back to the droid.. “What’s your name, little guy?”

The droid replied again, _[R3-SPK.]_

“I mean, do you go by a nickname?”

_[Negative.]_ The wire in his dome sparked again.

“We’ll have to fix that wire,” Finn observed. “But until then, would it be all right if I just call you Sparky?”

He paused for a moment, processing the new information. _[Affirmative. My new alias will be Sparky. I like that.]_

“Welcome to the Resistance, Sparky.”

**Author's Note:**

> This story was partly inspired by Delilah Dawson's novel _Black Spire,_ which mentioned illegal podracing in Batuu. I would love to see a podracing ride in the Disney Parks one day. I have finally gotten to experience Batuu for myself, and it sorely needs more than two big attractions.
> 
> And for those of you who are wondering, Sparky is my own droid:


End file.
